


Stars in the Water

by wimpyghost



Category: Homestuck
Genre: (wow nerds tbh), Aquapark AU, Astronomy Nerd!John, Fluff, M/M, Stargazing, also theyre about 19 in this, dave leads the aquarobics sessions and johns in charge of the kiddie pool, thats not an actual thing just my dumb AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-12
Updated: 2013-10-12
Packaged: 2017-12-29 05:46:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1001722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wimpyghost/pseuds/wimpyghost
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>two dorky aquapark employees admire the wonders of the night sky.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stars in the Water

**Author's Note:**

> this was inspired by an aquapark visit back in august, but it took me forever to actually write it;;;;; pffbb
> 
> funny how i actually visited that very same aquapark again today, the day i decided to post the fic. must be fate tbh.
> 
> (by the way, aquarobics is basically aerobics in the water lmao... thats what we call it where im from, but idk if its the same in english speaking countries so??? just in case)
> 
> (by the way #2, daves not wearing his shades in this. its not rlly all that relevant, but im just saying it in case someone would like to know? i didnt mention it bc,,, well,,, first of all this takes place at a point where daves already comfortable with john seeing his eyes and also its dark where they are so. yeah.)

It’s 8:37pm,

the clock on your phone tells you when you glance down on it to check the time, looking back up just to see the last four people leave the kiddie pool you supervise and entertain kids in.

Most kids struggle and protest when they’re told they have to leave (and that secretly makes you feel proud because it means they were having fun there with you), but it’s late and the little ones are too tired to do anything besides sleepily cling to their mothers while grumbling incoherent sentences into the women’s shoulders as they’re slowly being carried away.

It’s sort of weird, you think – kids this young aren’t usually supposed to stay up this late. But, well, who are you to criticize someone's parenting? Honestly, you’re just glad they left because that means you can go home now. The aquapark you work at closes at nine, so there’s no one around anymore. Or, at least, there’s no one outside. You don’t really know whether some people are still in the locker room area.

Letting out a sigh of relief, you’re just about to turn around to grab your stuff and leave when you hear a voice behind you.

“Another day of torture is behind us! Hellelujah, praise the lord and all that. Only about a million days remain.“

You snicker and finally turn around, only to see Dave - your best friend, coworker and crush - standing in front of you with a fake tormented expression on his face.

“It’s not like they’re forcing you to work here, you know. You can always quit if you want to.“

“Nah, you know I secretly love this job too much to just quit like that,“ he smirks at you, sitting down by the kiddie pool and soaking his bare feet in the water.

“Yeah, I know,“ you start, sitting beside him with a grin, “you’re really passionate about aquarobics.“

He playfully shoves you and you just laugh again.

“Shut the fuck up. At least I don’t spend my days playing with little kids, _Mama John_ ,“ he retorts. It gets him a light punch in the shoulder.

“You’re a dumb nerd,“ you inform him, still snickering.

“You love me anyway.“

And it’s funny, because you do. You love him. He may be a huge dweeb, yes, and it’s true that he can be a tiny bit irritating at times, but really, you wouldn’t have him any other way. He has his flaws, but so do you and everyone else, and they definitely don’t make you like him any less. No, in fact, these romantic feelings you have towards him have been a thing for a pretty long time, and you don’t think they’re gonna go away anytime soon.

You promised yourself you’d tell him how you feel someday.

You two sit there for a while, talking about everything and anything, and you feel content. You feel so endlessly, unbelievably content, like you’re cuddled up in the softest, warmest blanket and just on the verge of consciousness, slowly dozing off. It’s not a rare occurence, though – this is simply how you feel around Dave. It’s one of the best feelings in the world, really, and probably also one of the reasons you fell for him in the first place.

“Everything aside though, I’m honestly surprised you haven’t yet felt the need to tell me about how beautiful the sky is tonight,“ he says suddenly, a small smirk on his face. His tone is teasing and you know he’s making fun of your fascination with space, but he doesn’t mean it, he never does.

Normally, you’d roll your eyes at him and tell him to shut up and that space is amazing and he needs to appreciate it more, but not this time.

No, you don’t do any of that, because it has just dawned on you that you actually didn’t manage to admire the night sky yet today.

“Oh my god!“ you exclaim as you immediately look up, eyes wide, and…

Wow.

Wow, holy shit, that’s something!

“Oh my god. Oh my _god_. There’s so many!“

You are, of course, referring to the stars scattered all over the endless indigo above you. You swear to god there has to be at least a milion of them.

“Holy shit, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this! Well, not with my bare eyes, anyway – telescopes are something else entirely. But still, oh my god, it’s so clear! I can see so many of them!“

Wide eyed and stunned, you finally look back at Dave, who’s just sitting there grinning at you.

“You seriously didn’t know before I pointed it out? Unbelievable, the apocalypse must be near,“ he teases again and smiles, but it’s not a smirk this time. No, you can tell it’s an honest, fond smile, that he actually finds your enthusiasm endearing and that he’s glad something he brought up made you happy.

(What a dumb, sappy nerd.)

“Oh, shut up,“ you answer, but it’s half-hearted and there’s a smile on your face as well.

“Seriously, though,“ you continue, “I can see so many constellations! Look, there’s Cassiopeia and over there is Cepheus and-“

“John,“ Dave interrupts, “not everyone is an astronomy nerd like you. I can’t keep up, dude.“

You roll your eyes at him, but smile again immediately after. He’s right, after all. Not everyone is as knowledgeable about space as you are! You tend to forget that sometimes.

“Should I show you, then?“ you offer.

He contemplates it for a short moment, then shrugs.

“Sure, why not? Teach me about the stars, Mr. Egbert. I’m all ears,“ he jokes, shifting a little closer towards you, and you know it’s because it will be easier for him to see where you’re pointing this way, but your heartbeat picks up anyway. Ugh, you’re so dumb.

Despite that, though, you grin at him as if it didn’t affect you at all, and proceed to do exactly what he said. There’s no way you’d pass up an opportunity to rant about space!

You point out constellations to him and he watches attentively and eagerly listens to the extra information you throw in occasionally, and before you know it, at least half an hour has passed. It’s so nice like this, though, and you really wish your little astronomy lesson didn’t eventually have to end. But you can’t stay here all night, after all.

While you’re silent and looking for the next constellation to tell him about, he suddenly speaks up.

“Hey, John?“ he says, and you turn to him and _holy shit why is his face so close???_

He has this weird look on his face and as you look at him, the thought crosses your mind that now would be the perfect moment to kiss him.

But then he moves a little closer and fuck, is he planning on kissing you instead??? You think he is, oh god, oh fuck, you didn’t know he liked you too, oh _god_.

Even though you’re currently in the middle of a mental freak out, you move a tiny bit forward yourself and _shit, your faces are so close, so close, and oh fuck he’s leaning in here it goes here it goes-_

And then.

He abruptly moves away and next thing you know, there’s water all over your face and upper chest.

_The fucking asshole._

You don’t even give yourself enough time to feel disappointed before you’re splashing water right back at him.

“You shit,“ you exclaim as you attempt to shield yourself from the water he throws at you with one hand, using the other to fight back, and the douchebag even has the audacity to fucking _laugh_.

You decide that the best way to silence him is to push him into the kiddie pool.

However, you miscalculate and he manages to pull you down with him, so you end up in the pool as well.

Good thing your work clothes only consist of a polo shirt and swimming trunks.

“Ugh, great, now I’m all wet,“ you complain, but you don’t actually mind. It is slightly uncomfortable, yes, but it’s nothing you can’t handle.

“Yeah, I tend to have that effect on people,“ he winks at you, a stupid grin on his face, and you laugh a little despite how lame and overused this joke is and pretend that you aren’t currently trying really hard to keep your mind from straying into unwanted territories.

(Well, unwanted as of right now, because come on, getting a boner now would be pretty fucking awkward at best.)

“You wish,“ you answer, suddenly very grateful that it’s dark enough that he can’t see the light blush undoubtedly dusting your cheeks at this very moment.

Narrowing his eyes at you, he pretends to be offended.

“Take that back, Egbert. Or else.“

“Or else?“ you ask with a grin.

“Keep asking dumb questions and you’ll find out.“

“Wow, so badass! I’m practically qui- whoa!!!“

You don’t even get to finish your sentence before he’s attacking you and pushing you under the water. He doesn’t want to drown you, though, so he lets you resurface immediately and instead opts for splashing water at your face again.

“Ugh, you ass!“ you laugh, not hesitating to strike back.

And so, yet another splashing war ensues.

It manages to last for about ten minutes this time, but it would’ve probably lasted longer if it wasn’t for the person who was currently standing by the pool and clearing their throat loudly.

Alarmed, you and Dave stop immediately, somehow managing to hear the sound over all the noise you were making.

The person turns out to be your boss.

Shit.

“Out. _Now_ ,“ is all she says, or rather, _hisses_ through gritted teeth, and in a second you’re both on your feet and struggling to get out of the pool as fast as possible.

“Y-Yes ma’am! We’re sorry!“ Dave answers hurriedly and you want to laugh at how scared he sounds, but your boss can actually be fucking terrifying when she wants to be, so you can’t really blame him.

You grab all your belongings and throw them into your duffel bag in record speed before you’re literally bolting out of there, Dave right behind you.

You don’t stop running until you’re inside the staff locker room.

“Oh my god, we’re _so_ going to get it tomorrow,“ you laugh, a little out of breath from the running.

Dave chuckles in response and goes over to his locker, opening it before taking out a towel from it, which he then begins to dry his hair with.

“Good thing we’re both too good at our jobs to get fired,“ he replies and pokes his head out from underneath the towel, a small smile on his face.

You try to ignore how attractive he looks with his hair all messed up like that.

“We’re going to have to put up with her angry stares, though,“ you retort and, willing yourself not to think about other activities that could possibly mess up Dave’s hair, make your way to your locker as well because your shirt is starting to stick to your skin and it’s not exactly pleasant.

“You kidding? That’s the best part.“

You both snicker at that, and afterwards it’s silent as you both dry yourselves and change.

You opt out of taking a shower today – even though you kind of need it – because it’s late and you’re pretty tired already, instead deciding that you’ll just shower when you get home or in the morning, and it appears that that is what Dave is planning to do as well.

However, you can’t avoid changing from your (wet) work clothes anyway, so you proceed to do so, albeit awkwardly, since having your crush be in the same room while you’re changing is… yeah, let’s just say you’d really rather not be in this situation.

(You definitely wouldn’t mind a completely different scenario also involving you and Dave stripping while in the same room, though.)

You put on your regular clothes as quickly as possible, all the while facing your locker and not daring to turn around even once during the process.

When you’re done, you turn around cautiously and notice that Dave is ready to go as well, but facing away from you.

You clear your throat and when he turns to look at you, you notice his cheeks are slightly tinted red. For a second you think he might be blushing, but he’s got no reason to, right? He probably doesn’t like you back, after all, since that little moment earlier was most likely just a dumb prank.

Yeah, you’re just being silly.

“So, should we go?“ you ask, slinging your bag over your shoulder and slamming your locker shut.

“Well, unless you plan on staying the night here, I’d say that’s the best course of action.“

Grinning, you shove him a little in reply, and together you walk out of the door.

The walk to the parking lot is mostly silent, because at this point talking just takes too much effort since you’re both tired as hell and want nothing more than to go home and fall asleep. The silence is comfortable, though, or at least for you it is – you’re just quietly enjoying the last bits of Dave’s company before you part for the day, and it’s almost relaxing, though you _do_ wish you didn’t actually have to part ways. Snuggling up to Dave would surely be much more satisfying than hugging your pillow.

But alas, that’s not possible and you’re already standing next to your car (which is closer to the entrance than Dave’s), so you can’t put off saying goodbye anymore.

“So uh, goodnight, Dave. Thanks for gracing me with your dorky presence today, and also for listening to me ramble about stars. See you tomorrow!" you grin, turning away from him in order to open the car door.

“Hey, John?“

You turn back around.

And this time, he does kiss you.

**Author's Note:**

> hhgngn. i hope u enjoyed the fic!!! this is like. my longest work yet but tbh its definitely nOT,,, the best one,,,, ehhhnnhn
> 
> also i,, , , , promise im working on the prompts i got way back in june too, i am just... very slo w............


End file.
